“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, Because the Lord has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound.” Isaiah 61:1 This month, I’ve written about how there are millions of people trapped in slavery. But today I want to talk about how, without Jesus, we are all slaves. Slaves to sin. Slaves to darkness. Jesus said, “whoever commits sin is a slave of sin,” (John 8:34). And we’ve all sinned. Sin is breaking God’s law. Sin is lying, lust, covetousness, dishonoring parents, pride, making anything more important that God, to name just a few.
Our sin separates us from God. Because God is just, He must punish sin. The punishment for our sin is death and separation from God forever in Hell. We’re doomed. Left to ourselves, that is. But here’s the good news: God didn’t leave us like that. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life,” (John 3:16). That’s what Christmas is about: Jesus coming. God became flesh in the baby Jesus. He was born of a virgin girl named Mary in the town of Bethlehem, wrapped in swaddling cloth, and laid in a manger. Angels announced His birth to shepherds. And you want to know something really amazing? Those shepherds were very likely tending sheep that would be used for sacrifice. For years, the Jews had offered sacrifices of an unblemished lamb as an offering for sin. They had to do it again and again, year after year. But now, these shepherds would be seeing the perfect Lamb of God who would, once and for all, bear the sins of the world. I once read something extremely interesting: before a lamb was to be taken to the temple for sacrifice, its legs would be wrapped in swaddling cloth and it would be laid in a manger. Just like Jesus. You see, Jesus came to save His people from their sins (see Matthew 1:21). When He grew up, He died a horrible, cruel death on a Roman cross, thereby bearing God’s wrath and the punishment we all deserved. He was buried, but then on the third day, He rose again. And because death could not hold Him, death will not hold us either, all of us who put our trust in Him. We’re promised eternal life with Him. Perhaps, like me, you’ve heard this again and again. And, perhaps also like me, you’ve trusted Jesus as your Savior for years. Whatever your story, I invite you this Christmas season to join me in pondering afresh what Jesus did for us. Jesus came to set us free. Jesus sets us free from despair. Jesus sets us free from loneliness. Jesus sets us free from living for the approval of others. Jesus sets us free from addictions, whatever they may be. Jesus sets us free from sin. And, “if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed,” (John 8:36). After the shepherds saw Jesus, they left praising God and proclaiming what they had seen (see Luke 2:17-20). May that be our response, too. May the thought of what Jesus has done for us cause us to worship Him and tell others about Him. And always remember, “He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it,” (1 Thessalonians 5:24). All for Him, Savannah Jane
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Hi! I'm Savannah Jane...I'm the author of several books for children and young adults with a passion to encourage young people to live for Jesus. The third born in an amazing family of seven children, I was homeschooled all the way through. This is where I share encouragement for Christian girls, updates about my books, writing tips, book and movie reviews, and assorted other tidbits. Archives
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Quote"When I try, I fail. When I trust, He succeeds."
-Corrie ten Boom I'm on GoodReadsFollow my family's writing, illustrating, and publishing business/ministry.Follow my blog on Bloglovin' |